This is the fourth time Colantuono and Ranieri have come up against each other and so far honours are even: one win apiece and one draw. In these three fixtures Ranieri's teams have always scored at least one goal, totalling 8 for. Colantuono's Palermo lost 5-0 to Ranieri's Juventus in Turin in Serie A on 25 November 2007 and this was a double blow to the Atalanta boss, as his defeat with the largest margin along with his 5-0 defeat as Catania coach in Palermo on 4 April 2004 in Serie B, resulting in Colantuono being sacked for the first time.

There have been three competitive matches before this one between Colantuono and Inter, and to date the Atalanta manager has never won: 2 home draws and 1 win for Inter in Milan.

Ranieri as a coach has faced Atalanta 18 times, winning 10, drawing 6 and losing twice to the Bergamo team. It is interesting to note that in all of the 10 games played in Bergamo Ranieri's teams have always scored one goal for a total of 21 for. Ranieri also suffered at the hands of Atalanta in Serie A when, as Juve manager, he was ousted after drawing 2-2 at home on 17 May 2009.

Luca Cigarini, who has scored 15 goals in competitive matches for his club, is particularly fond of scoring against Inter. He has accomplished this on two occasions: 20 January 2008 during Inter 3-2 Parma and 31 May 2009 in Inter 4-3 Atalanta.

Half of the 10 goals Atalanta have scored so far after 7 league matches have come at the beginning of the second half: in the first 15 minutes, from the 46th to the 60th minute, they have scored 5 times. In that same 15 minutes, Inter (along with Parma) have conceded the greatest number of goals: five.

If Andrea Consigli plays tonight he will celebrate his 100th appearance for Atalanta. Of his 99 appearances so far 55 have been in Serie A, 40 in B, and 4 in Coppa Italia. He made his debut in a competitive match for Atalanta on 1 October 2008: Lazio 2-0 Atalanta in the Coppa Italia.

For the first time in 2011 Inter have managed to keep a clean sheet for two successive matches: the 1-0 win over Lille and the league match against Chievo Verona. It's been 220 minutes since Lodi scored his penalty in the 50th minute of Catania 2-1 Inter on 15 October last. Adding the remaining 40 minutes and the sum of the two matches mentioned above gives us a total of 220.

Claudio Ranieri is just one win away from achieving his 200th victory in competitive matches in Italy, where until now he has managed Campania, Cagliari, Napoli, Fiorentina, Parma, Juventus, Roma and Inter. As a manager his teams have won 145 matches in Serie A, 34 in Serie B, 20 in C1 from a total of 466 games. To complete the picture there have been 157 draws and 110 defeats. Ranieri's first victory dates back to 4 October 1987: Campania 1-0 Cagliari.

If Thiago Motta plays this evening it will be his 100th appearance in competitive matches in Italy. For now his 99 appearances have been for Genoa and Inter: 73 in Serie A, 8 in Coppa Italia, 14 in European competitions and 4 in other tournaments. Thiago Motta's first competitive match was on 19 October 2008: Genoa 1-0 Siena in Serie A.

BERGAMO - A goal for each team, and one denied by Luca Castellazzi, as the Week 9 match of the 2011/12 Serie A season between Atalanta and Inter ended 1-1. Wesley Sneijder, who had not scored since August, found the net to put Inter ahead in the 32nd minute, thanks to a cross from Zarate and a deflection from Cigarini. The team from Bergamo had few shots on goal, but only one was needed to get the draw – a header from Denis, courtesy of a cross from Moralez after 44 minutes. It was Castellazzi who salvaged the result with a great save on Denis' penalty in the 89th minute. It was the 5th penalty that has been awarded against Inter so far this season.

FIRST HALF - To deal with Atalanta, Claudio Ranieri fielded the same defence that lined up against Chievo, and then Zarate in attack alongside Milito, with Pazzini on the bench. Colantuono chose the same formation that defeated Parma on Sunday. Atalanta had no plans to slow down and they put the 6-point penalisation out of their minds; without it they would be in second place in the standings.

The first few minutes of play were characterised by fast play and quick exchanges, with the team from Bergamo being the first to threaten; Moralez took a corner and Peluso's header went safely into Julio Cesar's hands in the 5th minute. In the 9th minute an inviting pass from Maicon sent Milito into enemy territory, but the Argentine was thwarted, and seven minutes later Zarate's right-footer went over the crossbar. Stankovic shot high and then picked up a yellow card for a foul on Moralez that wasn't the hardest of challenges. After 20 minutes Sneijder took a firm shot with his left, which Lucchini pushed out for a corner. Later, after some build-up play, Stankovic blasted the ball high into the evening sky. The goal came in the 32nd minute from Sneijder's right foot off of Zarate's cross; Cigarini was the decisive figure in the goal, however, as he inadvertently deflected the ball to the far post, out of Consigli's reach. Sneijder then earned a free kick in the 43rd minute, but his ensuing attempt went straight down the centre and into Consigli's arms. Atalanta's equaliser arrived a minute later; a cross from Moralez found the head of a leaping Denis and Julio Cesar could only watch as the ball landed inside the far post. The score was an even 1-1 when the referee blew for halftime.

SECOND HALF - A problem with his left adductor muscle forced Julio Cesar to leave the game and Castellazzi started the second half in his place. Atalanta threatened in the 49th minute when Bonaventura's cross from the left came off of Maicon and had to be batted away by Castellazzi. Stankovic was already on a yellow card and risked an early exit on 52 minutes when his arm hit Schelotto's face directly in front of the linesman. Eight minutes later Atalanta nearly had their second when an attempt by Schelotto forced an excellent save from Castellazzi; however the Italo-Argentine was booked for his effort, as he had intentionally used his arm to control the ball in the build-up.

At the other end Zarate evaded Masiello to unleash a shot that Consigli parried with a diving save. Pazzini came on for Sneijder and it wasn't long before "Pazzo" had a chance; in the 64th minute he trapped Lucchini's clearance from Nagatomo's cross but then blasted the ball high only a few yards from the goal mouth. Twice Moralez sent a teasing cross into the box, but with no one to meet them. And then Inter – and the effervescent Maicon – put together at least three more chances to add their second goal. First through Stankovic, when he volleyed the ball from the Brazilian's cross, only to see his effort go just over the crossbar on 72 minutes. Then came a double chance for Milito: in the 74th minute it took a save from Consigli and an intervention from Masiello to deny "El Principe" from finding the net, and three minutes later a combination between Stankovic and Maicon sent the ball to the Argentine, only to see him chest the ball over the crossbar. In the 88th minute came the fifth penalty of the season awarded against Inter for contact between Marilungo and Chivu; it was a shoulder-to-shoulder challenge between the two, who both held onto each other, but Valeri had no doubts and pointed to the spot. It seemed a done deal for Atalanta as Denis stepped up to take the kick, but Castellazzi had other ideas and saved with his legs to preserve the result. After 4 minutes of added time Atalanta v Inter ended 1-1. Inter now have 8 points in the standings.


Atalanta 1-1 Inter (HT: 1-1)
Scorers: Sneijder 32, Denis 44.

Atalanta: 47 Consigli; 25 Masiello, 4 Capelli, 3 Lucchini, 13 Peluso; 7 Schelotto, 21 Cigarini (Carmona 75), 22 Padoin, 10 Bonaventura; 11 Moralez (Marilungo 84); 19 Denis (Gabbiadini 90+3).
Unused subs: 78 Frezzolini, 6 Bellini, 28 Gabbiadini, 88 Minotti, 90 Tiribocchi.
Coach: Stefano Colantuono.

Inter: 1 Julio Cesar (Castellazzi 46); 13 Maicon, 6 Lucio, 26 Chivu, 55 Nagatomo; 4 Zanetti, 19 Cambiasso, 5 Stankovic; 10 Sneijder (Pazzini 61); 22 Milito, 28 Zarate (Obi 67);
Unused subs: 2 Cordoba, 8 Thiago Motta, 30 Castaignos, 42 Jonathan.
Coach: Claudio Ranieri.

Referee: Paolo Valeri (Rome).
Bookings: Stankovic 17, Chivu 40, Moralez 42, Schelotto 59.
Added time: 0 + 4 minutes.

starting lineups

substitutes